Caterpillar to open new factory in Georgia

Caterpillar Inc., Peoria, Ill., has selected land near Athens, Ga., as the location for a new facility that will build small track-type tractors and mini hydraulic excavators. It will be part of Caterpillar's Building Construction Products (BCP) Division, which is based in Cary, N.C. These machines currently are made at Caterpillar's Sagami, Japan, facility.

The 1 million-sq.-ft. facility is expected to employ 1,400 people once it is fully operational. The total investment for opening the new facility will be about $200 million.

In addition to the 1,400 people working in the new facility, Caterpillar estimates another 2,800 full-time jobs will be created in the U.S. among suppliers and at other non-Caterpillar companies that will support the new facility.

"The decision to shift production from Japan to the U.S. is driven by the proximity to a large base of customers in North America and Europe," said BCP Vice President Mary Bell.

The North American facility will become Caterpillar's global source for small track-type tractors. For mini hydraulic excavators, the new facility will provide completed machines for customers in North and South America. It also will export partially assembled mini excavator base units to a facility in Europe, where final assembly will take place.

The company plans to break ground in Athens in the first quarter of 2012. Initial production at the facility is expected to begin in late 2013, ramping up to full production over a five-year period.